Intergenerational resource flows in Cote d'Ivoire: empirical analysis of aggregate flows

Type Journal Article - Population and Development Review
Title Intergenerational resource flows in Cote d'Ivoire: empirical analysis of aggregate flows
Author(s)
Volume 23
Issue 3
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 1997
Page numbers 525-553
URL http://www.jstor.org/pss/2137571
Abstract
The theoretical importance of intergenerational resource flows has been recognized since Caldwell's 1976 article on the direction of wealth flows and fertility decline. Nevertheless, to date, there has been no formal measurement of the direction and magnitude of intergenerational wealth flows for any high-fertility country. The analytical framework in this article allows separate measurement and analysis of resource flows through various channels including the family, market, and public sector. High-quality data from Cote d'Ivoire are used to show that in contradiction to Caldwell's claim, wealth flows are downward from older to younger generations in this high-fertility setting. Families in Cote d'Ivoire on average make net transfers to their children, just as they do in developed societies. However, resource transfers through the public sector in Cote d'Ivoire also appear to flow from older to younger generations rather than from younger to older as is found in most developed societies.

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